Talk to the Press

From time to time, Edmunds.com asks our users to share their stories - the good, the bad, and the ugly - with the press. If you'd like the opportunity to speak with the press, share an abbreviated version of your story here and, you may be selected to be in the limelight.

Comments

Not really. Here's the scoop. Edmunds.com on occassion needs to find persons that are willing to speak to the press about the car buying, owning, selling experiences. The idea is for you to share you abbreviated stories, and you may be asked to speak to the press. It could be newstory, a radio interview, etc.

When I'm in the market for a new car, I spend some time doing research. The four major sources I use for research are:

1. Consumer's Reports They have the most comprehensive reliability data of anyone.

2. Edmunds.com At their site, a wealth of information is available for new car shoppers. And, don't let me forget, used car shoppers too. I buy new so I go to their:

A. New Vehicles section. (dealers prices and everything!)

B. Their car reviews. (all well authored)

C. The features like "How to negotiate.."

D. A great place called "Town Hall"

Also I like Edmunds automotive related advertising. It's not overdone like some vehicle related sites on the internet.

3. My friends and acquaintenances are valuable sources too.

4. The last place to go is to the Lot and get your "hands on demonstration" : ^ )

I've had great results over the past few years with my new vehicle purchases. And I've been very successful selling my used ones. I owe it all to the excellent resources that I have outlined above.

I urge you to do your homework before buying. If you don't follow my recipe, then please develope your own plan.

Sincerely,Fivespeed(future Mercedes owner)

ps - The Edmunds Town Hall feature has Sports Car topics, Repair topics, Truck topics, and News topics (among a few)that will interest all persons regardless if they are in the market for a car or not.

Good example of a potential story re: how today's shoppers go about looking for information. Once again, to clarify there isn't a topic on hand here; rather, we are looking for folks who would like to speak to the press about all things automotive from the consumer's perspective. Please ask questions so I can assist. Thanks.

Does anyone here have experience researching or buying a small sports sedan (ex: BMW 3 series, Audi A4, Mercedes C class, Volvo S60, Lexus IS 300, Acura TL)? Especially...if you traded from an SUV or bigger car, we have a journalist wanting to talk to you...10 of you as a matter of fact ;-)

Has there been any study of the "road rage" phenomenon as a direct result of the increase in the popularity of SUV's?It seem to me that as more of these vehicles have been put into daily use as passenger cars, the incidents of aggressive and BAD driving that provoke "road rage" have increased.At least that is my obervation from the freeways of L.A. You could possibly chart the same decrease in civility that occurs with so many dorks on cell phones wreaking havoc on the street which ALSO sets people off behind the wheel. Is this a study that has ever been undertaken????All I can tell you is that: wed an "invincible" driver in an SUV and a cell phone to a marginal driving ability and you have a recipe for instant road rage on the part of other drivers who have been cut off, forced out of their lane,etc. and I think you have a correlation between the two.[Add a little rain in SOCAL and you have MAYHEM]. Best to all, hope I didn't missppell anything[!].

In an effort to keep this discussion on the right track, I went back and deleted several off-topic messages. If you would like to make a post that doesn't pertain to this discussion's intended subject matter, please feel free to use the search function to find a more appropriate place to make it or to start a new discussion. Thanks.

A major magazine is hoping to interview prospective buyers who are a) anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Nissan Titan; and/or b) comparing pricing and incentive deals on GM and Ford pickups to decide which to buy. Please respond with your daytime contact information to jfallon@edmunds.com by October 8. Thanks!

OK, I'll bite. If you come by anybody looking for someone to share thoughts or experiences on any of the following they can contact me (I can provide additional information on any of these upon request):

-Popularity of luxury sedans-Cars for gadget geeks-Marketing value of automotive safety-Young buyers hooked on new cars-Utility of in-car navigation systems-Distractions of in-car electronics-Value of stability (yaw) control systems as a safety advance-How a customer would change an auto manufacturer-How the dealer influences the ownership experience and impression of a brand

I'm sure there are a couple of others but this should be a start. If you need additional information please send an email to rdollie@home.com and I'll forward phone contact information.

"Thanks. We aren't really looking for specific information as much as folks who like the limelight."

Obviously you've found the right guy!

Anytime they want to talk about growing up in $150 cars, I'm their guy.... There's loads of fun things to talk about other than specific models (not that they aren't fon as well). The fact that the oil change interval on a modern car was the tire change interval in the fifties.

How about how the heck do the incredible failures get through big companies? The Edsel was always the classic business failure story and you'd think that day was long ver - but look at the Aztek! At very least GM didn't set up a whole dealer network for the Aztek! How do you feel about the guy with the Edsel dealership who cut his losses and went with Studebaker?

My father held a job where the press frequently tried to interview him. He had a real distrust of the press because of one interview he gave and was misquoted. It caused him a lot of trouble. To avoid a repeat of the same situation, when an interviewer, with TV camera rolling, would ask him a question, he would just give them obscenities and profanity, telling them what they could do with their microphone and camera. They got nothing fit to show on the news.

Hi - I am PR Director for Edmunds.com and often am approached by journalists looking to talk with consumers for various automotive stories. Currently, a TV reporter in LA is looking to find LA area residents who have been victims of "secret warranties," where a driver brings a vehicle in to get some service, and had work secretly done on their vehicle by a dealer who had been advised to do so by the manufacturer even though a recall notice was never sent to the owner. If that describes you, please post your story and you may have the opportunity to be interviewed on TV. (Your identity will be protected at your request.) In the past, reporters have been interested in people who left Subs to get into sports cars, and people in Michigan who purchased traction control as an option, and people who used Edmunds.com True Market Value pricing in their per-purchase research. So, you can see the topic could be just about anything. We are hoping Town Hall users who are willing to share their stories will post some basics about their automotive situation on this discussion board, so journalists can browse through and find the stories of interest to them. Ideally, you would post the vehicle(I) you have now, the vehicle(I) you have owned in the past, your city and state of residence, and any interesting features or experiences you think could make a great automotive story. I'll start:I drive a Volvo S40 and live in manta Monica, CA. Previously, I owned a Honda Prelude and a VW Corrado, then worked for Volvo and enjoyed employee leases on an 850 and S90 before buying the S40 and living happily ever after at Edmunds.com. Thanks to those of you out there who decide to participate. I think we're going to hear some fun stories in this discussion board!

Hi - just had another journalist ask for help finding consumers who can attest to the fact leasing is not what it used to be. Did you or someone you know get a great leasing deal years ago and now are back in the market and have sticker shock? Did you have to downgrade the model, or did you find other ways to cope with the significantly higher prices? If so, please respond to jfallon@edmunds.com with your e-mail, phone number, city and state of residence, and a brief description of your experience. The journalist is from a major NY-based publication and promises to keep you identity hidden at your request.Hope to hear from you soon!

Hi, there is a reporter who is needing to do some interviews ASAP. Here's his post below:

<<I'm a reporter working on a story about the recent Ford Explorer and mid-sized GM SUV recalls. I'm looking for an owner of one of those vehicles to interview for a story. Please send e-mail to userf@cris.com if you are interested.>>

Our PR Director for Edmunds.com is currently helping a major newspaper find consumers who are experiencing "gadget backlash." Did you buy a vehicle filled with exciting techno-gadgets, and wish you didn't? Have you given up trying to play a CD, set the ambient temperature or use the navigation system because the controls are just too complicated? Did you drive off the lot in your new vehicle without getting a full explanation of all the toys, figuring "how hard could it be?" and are now realizing it's more confusing than you could have imagined? What experiences have you had with the Mercedes joystick and the Volvo radio, both of which feature a lot of functionality but seem less intuitive than traditional controls?This story will touch on the following trends:the gadgets in high-end vehicles from the Lexus LS 430 and Volvo S80 to Porsches and beyond drivers in their 40s-60s buying sports carsdriver distraction. If you have anything to add, we'd love to hear from you. Please submit your experience to Talk to the Press and/or to jfallon@edmunds.com, including your current vehicle, daytime phone number and city and state of residence. (Your identity will be protected at your request.) Thanks for your consideration of this opportunity to share your story!Please contact:jfallon@edmunds.com

I just purchased a Mercedes E-430 4-Matic loaded with gadgets. I can tell you that so far, rather that being overloaded, the gadgets have simplified our driving and made our trips more enjoyable. I have read a number of reviews criticizing the complexity of the COMAND Navigation system. My wife and I have found it, however, easy to use. In fact, our teenagers picked up the system without reading the book. It almost unnerving inputing an address, and then happily following the directions, totally oblivious of one's whereabouts, until suddenly you see your destination! Likewise, it is reassuring to be able to always ask the system to direct you "Home". The hands-off mobile phone is also a pleasure. We are using it more often than expected, especially during off-peak hours when we have unlimited air-time. Another gadget is the Parktronic system with proximity sensors on the front and rear bumpers. It is useful even when pulling into my garage at home. The car has the capability to receive Internet news, weather and stocks, but I haven't subscribed to the service. It also has a Tele-aid system, which allows us to call for roadside assistance or emergency help at the touch of a button. It is unobtrusive, but instills confidence.

I think baby boomers, not to mention Generation X'ers and beyond are more adaptable than many give us credit for. We climb the learning curve quickly enough to enable the "gadgets" to be transformed from annoyances to useful features. Keep 'em coming!

This "gadget backlash" story is sparking a lot of great responses - the reporter writing the story is thrilled and looks forward to hearing more. Does anyone have anecdotes about learning how to use the gadgets, or trying to figure out what a button does? Thanks again for taking the time to share on this discussion board and/or directly to jfallon@edmunds.com.

built into the onboard computer. So, besides the specially cut key, the alarm system, the deadbolt lock doors, and the electronic chip in the key that kills the electrical system, there is this code feature where you can program a 4 digit code that will lock up the engine ignition systm (even if you have the alarm remote and the key) unless the proper code is entered.

Now let's see: I set the code because I'm in some dangerous area. The guy comes up with a gun and gets my alarm remote and the key.... and I'm not going to give him the code when he asks?....hmm.

Alternately, what good is it (or what good is the rest of the stuff). If all the other stuff works, they're going to have to tow the car away anyhow, and this feature won't stop them from doing that.

Besides, I'm scared to death to try the thing out.If you program it and then don't enter the code right you have to have it towed to the dealer to have it unsecured...

I rented a clapped out bonneville this year in detroit, er I mean destroyed.

For two weeks I couldn't figure out why the radio would always be one click too loud of soft, and change volume while driving. I was looking through the yellow pages for a exorsist, but I chalked it up to typical pontiac crap. Coming back from niagra falls over night, the radio was consistantly too loud, don't know how the family slept through it. There were a million radio buttons on the thing, some told what the song was playing, some said news, traffic but no sound was heard on these settings.

The red dash lights were a little too top gun for me. I liked the button that changed the mph to kph on the speedometer. The whole needle moves. I had it on in detroit and my wife wanted to know why ewe were going 100, 100kph=62mph. Very handy when driving in canada.

Couldn't wait to get back to the states where my red protege was waiting for me. Radio comes on with the car and off I go.